Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Todd Coolman & Trifecta: Collectables

The
Trifecta is led by bassist Todd Coolman, supported by pianist Bill Cunliffe and
drummer Dennis Mackrel. Their collective experience is impressive.

Coolman
is a two-time Grammy Award winner who, during a 25-year career, has worked with
Horace Silver, Gerry Mulligan, James Moody, Jon Faddis and many others. Cunliffe
has played with Buddy Rich, Clayton Hamilton, Benny Golson, Ray Brown and more;
Mackrel was hired by Count Basie, stayed with that band when Frank Foster took
over as leader, and also joined the Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars and groups led by
Buck Clayton.

The
trio format demands excellent artists, and this album proves that these guys
are among the best working today. The melodic lines often are carried by a
pianist and a horn, but in this case the “horn” is the bass; Coolman not only
provides a solid rhythm line, but is an outstanding melodic soloist. He works
beautifully with Cunliffe, and lays down some of the finest solo passages I’ve
ever heard. Along the way, Mackrel keepseverything moving solidly.

The
menu includes charts from the Great American Songbook — “You’re My Everything,”
“Prelude to a Kiss,” “We’ll Be Together Again” — and a number of mid- to up-tempo
arrangement by members of the trio.

This
group doesn’t produces “background music,”; this stuff grabs — and holds — our
attention. One of my criteria long has been Is it music I’d enjoy hearing in a
club that I attend regularly?The
answer is a rousing yes!